Arnau d'Orfes. Firecaster & Merc. (development)

Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Light of Andorra
1

Name: Arnau d’Orfes
Covenant: Andorra [Sa Dragonera]
Saga: Light of Andorra (Sa Dragonera)
Characteristics: Int +2, Per 0, Pre +1, Com +1, Str +2, Sta +1, Dex +1, Qik 0
Age: 27
Conf: 1(5)

VIRTUES AND FLAWS
FIRE CASTER (accelerated ability)
Life Boost
WEALTHY
Mercenary Captain: 20-ish almogavers under his direct command with medium armor, swords and shields. Some of them carry crossbows.
Improved Characteristics
Arcane Lore
Flight (HMRE p.35) Earned through Initiation
Veteran. Earned in his campaigns
Well travelled. Earned in his campaigns

AGE QUICKLY
OATH OF FEALTY (Flame Brothers; original Flambeau tenets)
Deleterious circumstances (when wet, -3 casting)
Reckless
Infamous (Butcher 4 among Muslims)
Driven (“Mystical reconquista”).
Lame (Ordeal for Flight) Earned through Initiation

ABILITIES
Speak Occitan (Catalan) 5
Speak Latin (church) 3
Speak Arabic (low class) 3
Catalonia Lore (politics) 2
Iberia Lore (Arab lands) 3
Balearic Islands Lore (geography) 1
Maghreb Lore (geography) 1

Animal Handling (horses) 1
Athletics (flying) 2
Awareness (alertness) 2
Chirurgy (slashing wounds) 1
Ride (comfort) 2
Stealth (at night) 2

Carouse (social) 2
Folk Ken (soldiers) 2
Charm (soldiers) 1
Bargain (services) 3
Leadership (soldiers) 3+2
Etiquette (court) 1
Guile (feigning strength) 1

Org Lore: OoH (militant magi) 1
Org Lore: Sahirs (personalities) 1
Org Lore: Flame Brothers (initiations) 3
Org Lore: Church (militant orders) 1
Tactics (raids) 3
Magic Lore (djinn) 3
Faerie Lore (Catalonia) 2
Infernal Lore (infernal djinn) 1
Profession: Scribe (letters) 1
Artes Liberales (arithmetic) 1
Warlock Magic Theory (set up hearth) 2

Flight (take off) 3
(Second Sight 3)
(Hex 3)
FIRE CASTING 15+3
Penetration (djinn) 4

Brawl (dagger) 2
Single weapon (Sword) 5

The XP also pay for the Flight, Veteran and Well Travelled virtues (plus the lame flaw), 4 enriched items (one major, 3 minor) a quality items [Firebringer (pyrite)] his sword (Talladora) and his armor (Aegis of Faith)

PERSONALITY TRAITS
Reckless +3
Brave +2
Flamboyant +3
Lecherous +1
Dislikes Muslims +1
Loyal +2

COMBAT
Combat totals with no Encumbrance factored in.
Brawl: -1, +2, -1, +2
Brawl (dagger): -1, +5, +2, +5
Talladora, longsword (+shield): +1, +12, +8(+14), +10

Soak: +4 (no armor, clam shell); +5 (helmet, load 1); +12 (Quality hauberk); +16 (full armor);
Load: 6 (longsword, large shield, helmet, mail half armor; the most usual combo)
Encumbrance: 0 (no armor), –1 (half armor), -2 (full armor)

Enriched Items

  • Clam shell in a necklace (Tough Virtue)
  • Topaz in his quality helmet (Puissant Leadership)
  • Dripstone in a pendant (Second Sight 3). it can be worn "pirate style" over one of his eyes using a series of bands and hooks.
  • Blackthorn branch (Hex 3; 13 uses only)

Weapons

  • Talladora, Excellent quality arming sword (longsword) from a master craftsman of Toledo. (+2 attack, +2 damage)
  • Aegis of Faith. Exceptional quality mail hauberk (+3 protection = +8 protection, load 3)
  • Fire Tail, Exceptional quality large shield (+3 defence; +6 defence, load 2).

Quality Items

  • Firebringer, pyrite (+3 fire related effects)
  • Fire Tail (shield) has been enchanted to act as the (necessary) prop for the Flight ability. It depicts a flaming comet. it is a comet shield, something somewhat dated given the current fashion in shield design in Iberia.

MUNDANE EQUIPMENT
Arnau dresses like a knight. He has a penchant for red and orange. His best possessions are his weapons and armour: [b]Talladora /b, a Toledo steel arming sword (longsword) that has been worked buy a master craftsman; Fire Tail, the shield he uses for both defence and flight; and Aegis of Faith, his armor, bult with exceptional craft ability and containing a higher proportion of interlinked rinks than the usual armor that most warriors wear. Due to a savy distribution of weight, it is still light depsite the extra protection it affords. The helmet that Arnau wears contains an enriched topaz in its brow that acts as a focus for his leadership abilities. His flamboyant helmet makes Arnau highly visible on the battlefield, and this is a good thing for leadership purposes.

Arnau generally wears his half mail armor. He only equips the whole armour set when he expects heavy trouble. In the cross of his sword he carries Firebringer, a pyrite of quality that he grates against his armoured rugged forearm to generate sparks, that then he intensifies into full firecaster effects. He got Firebringer from the charred body of a dead sahir he bested in magical combat. He also has all the apparatus and paraphernalia of his role. Horses, weapons, tents, supplies and all the equipment needed for an Almogaver unit and its HQ.

Other: Arnau has a warlock hearth (witch kitchen) near Sa Dragonera.

BACKGROUND

The Flame Brothers are an almogaver mercenary band. There are between 450 and 600 active Flame brothers at any given time. They tend to work for Christian armies fighting the Muslims, and tend to be active in both Iberia and the Levant. Their origins and one of the areas where they recruit the most is located near castell Toló, in the County of Perelada, in northern Catalonia, even if they tend to work throughout Christendom, especially in its southern frontier areas.

The Flame brothers specialize in siegecraft, both offensive and defensive. They are especially adept at taking enemy fortresses by escalade. Troops that tend to associate with them have noted that enemy fortresses have a surprising tendency to burn when the Flame Brothers are around.

The Flame Brothers trace their (mythical?) origins to the auxiliary troops that helped Flambeau and his seven champions during their campaign against the Sahirs of Iberia. Acording to their foundation story, they were present in the final battle where Flambeau fell. Delendos took the survivors of the engagement and retreated to the Pyrenees. Here, he decided to teach the leaders of the men a version of fire magic. The objective was for them to continue the war against the Sahirs unrestricted by the code. Some Sahirs were already in negotiations to enter House Ex Miscellanea and continuing to wage war against them (even Wizard’s War) was deemed undesirable politically by the leaders of the Order. The creation of the independent (but likely-minded Flame Brothers) by teaching them a version of Ignem and making them swear an oath to wage a crusade against the Muslim magic wielders was Delendos’ response to his needs under the political mood of the time.

Acting under the guise of a mercenary band, the Flame Brothers brought down some of the killers of Flambeau and ensured that the Sahirs looked more keenly to acquire the Parma Magica and be under the aegis of the Order. By 1230 the attention of the Flame Brothers tends to centre more on Berber magicians than Sahirs, but their general crusade against Moorish and Berber magic wielders continues to this day. They have a long story of animosity with the Iberian and Middle Eastern Sahirs, since they have waged a low intensity war for centuries, and some members of the Flame Brothers still try to bring down a Sahir when they can.

Most leaders of the company are Firecasters. Firecasting is a mystical ability that allows them to access their Inner Fire and summon and control flames at will, giving them great military power. However, this comes at the cost of them consuming themselves, and they tend to die relatively young. In the mid XIIth century the Flame Brothers learned from a captured folk witch that folk witch magic can be taught in the same way that they initiated Firecasting. With the (not necessary willing) help of a captured coven they developed their own folk witch tradition and now are able to Initiate the full powers of a witch coven. This has increased their power substantially, and they have become bolder in some of their operations ever since. The taking of Tortosa marked the start of them using their capacity for flight as one of their main escalade tools.

Given their expertise with magic users and the supernatural, the Flame Brothers work for the Order of Hermes from time to time. They are commonly contracted to act as Redcap escorts or as auxiliaries for magi during hunts and wizard wars. When contracted by magi, they have learned to bargain for magical resources as well as silver.

The Flame Brothers were contracted by the Catalan crown for the conquest of Mallorca. Around 350 of them were available for the campaign. Their high water came when the knights refused to enter the breach in the wall of the capital city (“shame on you, gentlemen, shame on you!” Jaume dixit); the Flame Brothers spearheaded the assault. Ciutat de Mallorca burned. This earned them the gratitude of the king and the contempt of some of the nobles in the campaign since it put them in evidence. The king has kept some of his mercenaries on Mallorca in pacification operations and they are to be used in further Balearic actions. Around 200 mercenaries left for the Levant after the fall of the city, to reinforce the operations that the Phoenix (Grand master) of the company was performing there. This has left around 150 Flame Brothers in Mallorca under the command of Bernat de Ferrofós, one of the 3 Conflagrations (triad of leaders) of the mercenary company. They are doing mop up activities around the island while waiting to attack Eivissa.

Arnau is one of the Campfires (middle ranking officer) of the Flame Brothers. He commands around 20 Flames (warriors) and has three Torches (sergeants) under his command. He can command larger forces if he petitions them, but generally tends to work with smaller ones for field actions. Arnau’s unit is specialized in escalades, and some of its members have undergone initiation to be able to fly to help secure a wall section and help their companions to climb it. Their performance so far has been good in their actions, but the fact that this leaves the warriors lame has meant that they tend to act as support crossbowmen when not in active escalade actions. Arnau is the bastard son of the Compte d'Empuries (Count of Empuries). He was well cared for in his early years, and has maintained contact with his family, even if they were glad to see him go off with the Flame Brothers. Being one of the Firecasters of the Brotherhood he has had formal training regarding the supernatural and liberal arts and is well educated by medieval standards. He is both a leader and an ambassador of the Brotherhood and the wares it offers, so they ensure that he is capable of conducting a series of activities with a modicum of success. Arnau likes women, likes his wine and likes to laugh loudly. He hates being lame, but enjoys the possibility of flying that it brought him.

Ranks in the Flame Brothers

  • Flame (Soldier)
  • Torch (Sgt). Commands 4-6 Flames
  • Campfire. Commands 3 Torches (Arnau is one of these)
  • Bonfire. Commands 3 campfires.
  • Combustion. Commands 3 bonfires
  • Conflagration. Commands 3 Combustions (Bernat de Ferrofós is in Mallorca)
  • Phoenix. Commands all.
2

Well, here comes the first iteration of Arnau. he is in a spread format to (hopefully) ease the reading; in the next edits I will compress the info. it is not a completed character: it still needs to decide the spell effect it will have and define better the V&F.

I am very open to comments. What I am unlikely to remove is the Wealthy virtue, since I would hate to have to recalculate everything so much. The rest can be moved around without much problems.

I have to say that this saga is quite above what I have previously done for XP at character creation! The character looks a lot more rounded and powerful instead of the patethism that you tend to see in recently created characters per the RAW. I created the same character using regular rules and well,... he is not that impressive :laughing:

Cheers,
Xavi

3

Keeping up with his development, I am looking at his magical effects. I have currently worked on the fire part of his spells. He has 66 levels of effects to invest in his spells (they work like magic items, with penetration and uses per day all thrown in). So fdar I have 3 possibilities:

OPTION A: Make him a summoner and controller of fire.
He is like Pyro from the X-men, basically. It has the advantage that this can be used as hermetic artillery to set fire to enemy fortresses.

  • Summon a large fire (+5 damage). Diameter duration. 3 uses per day, penetration 22.
  • Master of the flame (can manipulate a fire up to a bonfire doing +10 damage). Voice range, Concentration. 3 uses per day, penetration 22.

OPTION B: Make him a general flame magus

  • Palm of Flame (1 use/day, penetration 0)
  • Flash of the Scarlet Flames (3 uses/day, penetration 0)
  • Blade of Virulent Flame (1 use/day, penetration 0)
  • Fiery Arrow (+10 damage POF) (12 uses/day; penetration 20)

OPTION C: Make him a close combat fighter

  • Palm of Flame (1 use/day, penetration 0)
  • Flash of the Scarlet Flames (3 uses/day, penetration 0)
  • Blade of Hellish Flame (+10 damage) (3 uses/day, penetration 22)
  • Spasms of the Uncontrolled Hand (3 uses/day, penetration 0)

I could push the penetration of the sword to 30 if necessary. However, he is not a close combat monster (he is ok, but that it is), so this sounds like a weird combo for him to have.

The 3 characters have different feelings. The B option is more or less the approach we took for Ignes Festi in our Davnalleus saga. It works. However, given the predominant power level of the magi around, it seems he will simply be doing the same, and doing it worse. Same for the close combat. This leaves the Pyro version as the top one. However, I am very open to opinions :slight_smile:

Looking at more spell effects tomorrow.

4

Flexibility, well roundedness, and impressiveness are what I am aiming for. Not munchkin characters, but well rounded solid capable characters.

So you are from a sort of para-magi (para-military) group set up by Delendos back in the 8th century to conduct magical guerilla warfare upon the Sahirs. I can dig that. Now, keep in mind that most (but not all) the Sahirs in Hispania have converted to Hermetic by now. But your line is detached from the Order and does not care.
However, two tricky things to consider from a metagame perspective (meaning your character may or may not know or care anything about this, but you as the player should be aware).

  • The Hermetic Sahirs of Estancia-es-Karida are old allies of the Knights of Seneca since the days of El Cid and Valencia. The heroic personality of Els Cid was such that he was able to bring "a small band of Christian wizards and Arabic sorcerers to the table to parley a truce and unite with him against the Almorvids" (Umayads were Arabic, the Almorvids and Almohades were Berbers). There was a covenant at Valencia which dissolved shortly after El Cid dies, half the magi migrating North to Andorra (the early Knights of Seneca), and the rest migrating to Granada (the Hermetic Sahirs). However, this may well mean nothing to you, since you are not a Knight of Seneca or Hermetic magus, just descended from a cabal of para-military-magi established long before any of that.
  • There is a cabal of Moslem Flambeau, the Banu Mazal, or "Sons of the Torch". I am going to leave it at that, an irrelevant throw away tid-bit of data that may or may not ever become important (probably not ever though).

Now as for your magic, strange and foreign as it is (all from Hedge Magic Revised, correct?); can you give me a quick overview of what you are capable of?

5

HYPERBOREAN HYMNS:
SPELL-LIKE EFFECTS: the spells I list act like magic items: They have a spell, a number of uses per day and the penetration all built in (paying points). The amount of points you get depends on your ability level (15). Each hymn allows you a series of effects. I have chosen Psyrinpheu since it is related to heat, conquest, aggression, willpower, violence, iron and in general, warfare. I can design any spell related to those fields, but thematically I am limiting myself to Ignem (and some minor corpus and terram in the future) spells. There is no roll at all to cast the hymns (like a magic item like I said). I am considering if I take a second hymn or not, but probably will not, increasing the Psyirinpheu effects a little. I can improve the hymns by spending vis in the lab, or by dedicating the points I earn when the ability goes up to it. It is expensive in vis (1 pawn per point) so it might not be the best option.

HYMNS: By spending massive amounts of vis (one vis per 3 LEVELS of the spell) I can sit down for up to a season (the longer, the larger the bonus I get) and cast ritual magic. Formula is Com+Speak hyperborean + hymn + aura + a series of bonuses for appropriate behavior and performing penance et al. This can come up to be quite high, but eats vis like a bitch, so the effect is limited. So far I could cast spells up to level 45 if I calculated it well. Level 60 rituals are not far away, or even reachable if I dedicate time to it. A level 45 ritual are 45 pawns of vis, though, so less than optimal.

NIGHTWALKER
I can send my spirit out of my body. Versatle Phantasticum means that I can do that at will by performing a limited ritual. It is invisible and its presence causes drowsing on nearby people. I can speak to people in their dreams. I can turn physical whenever I want and affect the real world (while invisible I can interact with the spirit world), but since I am straying I can pass through walls and move as fast as a flying bird. It is quite useful as a recon effect, and for assassination attempts. He has no Might so ignores any sort of magical ward (explicitly stated in their chapter, where it says that Tremere have a bunch of them for warfare precisely for this).

I also have to fight against other infernally-aligned nightwalkers in fertility battles for the area where I reside once per year; the battle is in the spirit world and determines the outcome of the crops in the area for the following year. This is not voluntary, you stray by default and muster with the other area Nightwalkers to fight whether you want it or not.

SAHIRS
I do not care much that they are hermetics, but I will go after the non hermetic ones first. One can hit hard, but is not really stupid either. The fact that they are hermetics is one of the reasons why these guys exist. The alliance of Andorra with the Sahirs is more problematic, though, since the basic idea was for these guys to be somewhat obsessive reconquista proponents. Will think about it.

FIRST SENTENCE
I did not catch you there. Were you implying that this guy is a munchkin? Just to know. :slight_smile: I am trying to build around the concept of mercenary captain and reconquista obsessive guy that hunts sahirs. Travelled, speaks languages to be able to move around, has social abilities, plenty of organization lores and knowledges developed due to his campaigning and dedicated hunting and some combat abilities. If you think it is a munchkin I can apply a groucho marx principle here, though (Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others.).

Cheers,
Xavi

6

No, no, I didn't say he was a munchkin. I said that I created my CharGen rules to craft well rounded characters as opposed to munchkins. I was taking your comment about feeling well rounded and pointing out how this is an example of, with a slight boost to the build carefully directed, characters can be built to be more well rounded and have a more realistic skill set, and they don't have to be munchkin monsters. This CharGen system is a revision of a previous system that did create munchkin monsters.

As for Arnau, I do not have a firm enough of a grasp of what you are doing to make that judgment. Cite me the book and page number for Hymns so I can look them up and let me see if I can think of an alternative fluff to fit the mechanics. But honestly, I was more comfortable with Hex :laughing: .

hey, wait a minute...
This isn't Hedge Magic, this is Ancient Magic.
You tried to pull a fast one on me :wink:
I strongly recommend other players weigh in their thoughts and opinions before I decide to let this one slide or put the hammer down on it.

7

Sorry, not really the time to read :frowning: Which is, at quick glance, too bad.

I thought about this on my way home, though. Are you sure Hyperborean Hymns can do that? I was under the impression that they couldn't do CrIg effects like what one would attribute to Flambeau.

Given that, here's what I would have done for what is essentially an hedge fire mage, maybe that'll inspire you:

  • Create a Mythic Companion.
  • Use the Ex Misc rule to create a supernatural accelerated ability on par with "Whisper with the Winds", of whatever it's called. Serf's parma (it's been an awfully loong time), but I believe EFs are 1/3 hermetic level? This lets you do all sort of offensive fire effects, at the cost of penetration. Arcane connections become all the more important. This, IMO, ties nicely to flambeau, since there's a direct and clear link between the ability and CrIg.
  • Maybe make him an Elementalist as per HMRE.
  • Use the RoP:M rules to have focus powers like Crafter of Form. The mundane variant, powered by fatigue. This lets you do some Ignem spontaneous magic.
  • Give him, using the same rules, some lesser and/or greater powers.
  • Additionnal virtues to make him awesome.
8

That sounds like a good idea. How about "Fire Casting" as an Accelerated Ability? This is based off of Peregrine's definition of Vibria's Magic Focus, creating fire and controlling flames thus created. Roll Stamina + Fire Casting for a casting total, the ease factor is the equivalent level of the desired spell effect. You benefit from a Magic Aura and can add pawns of vis to your casting total. You determine what level you are going for before you roll, and what you roll over that counts towards Penetration. Further, I recommend taking the Minor Virtue of Life Boos, and each Fatigue you spend adds +5 to your casting total.
I really like this idea. This may have been the Supernatural Ability associated with the Gift for many a Flambeau magus. Certainly likely for Vibria, and quite similar to Roberto (who also has Life Boost).
This will give Arnau greater flexibility and lots of firepower :mrgreen:
Dropping the Hyperborean thing and going with this, keeping the other Virtues, maybe adding Hex after all :wink:
Or maybe not. Just putting it out there.

9

Do note that once you create a fire, and it starts burning on it's own and speads, it then becomes a natural (non-magical) fire, but still counts as a fire you created and thus your power allows you to control it. You can then perhaps "lob & release" bits of these flames (a-la Leap of the Flames), making an Aiming roll as to skirt around penetrating Magic resistance.
Other magi might keep this mind. Just as you can use Rego to lob and release stones (a-la Invisible Sling of Vilano), you can also lob natural fire. And Vibria's focus would likewise cover throwing fire she initially created but now burns naturally.

10

I have neither of those books, so I'll be taking the Fifth. :slight_smile:

11

And I haven't enough experience in the system to make an informed and/or honest judgement on this.

12

Hi there!

Quite a response! :smiley:

Ok, for starters Fixer is right: officially, the rules for Hyperborean Hymns do not allow fire per se, but Psyrimphseu has a heat entry and also centres on agression, willpower, conquest, agression, wolves, iron, and a series of stuff that sounds like fitting to me. So I bent it a little to make it fire centric.I refused on purpose to use any of the other uses for the Hymn and centre on flames only in order to keep the system as limited as possible.

Marko, yes it is Ancient Magic. Oversight on my part since I have 9 Ars books open searching for stuff and rules up and down when making the character! :laughing:

Now, I decided on hyperborean hymns because it fits the bill for pre-hermetic magic that we were discussing in the other thread (the one started by Gremlin44): not very powerful formulaic magic, but it is there + powerful rituals but at a crazy vis cost. Since it is official rules, I went for it. I am not set on it, though, so I am open to suggestions. Let's see your alternatives :slight_smile:

ELEMENTALISTS: I looked at the Elementalists of HMRE. They fail abysmally at replicating Flambeau's powers. It is impossible to build a fire using mage with Elementalist rules. :frowning: This is the main reason why I moved hell and earth searching for something that could replicate it in the Ars books, and ended up with Hyperboreans as the more similar structure. :slight_smile: But yes, a fire mage is what I was trying to do.

ROP:M RULES: I am not very happy with this. For starters losing fatigue like crazy does not fit my concept of a fire combat magus much. If I give him so many powers as you suggest Fatigue runs out VERY fast, even if the set of powers would match what I want to do. It could be an option, but this drawback is quite heavy... In play it wouldn't be very important (there will be A LOT of more capable combat magicians around him, so he could be a Hare Krishna and come up on top on engagements anyway) but conceptually makes me grimace.

"WHISTLE UP THE WIND, TOAST EDITION": That sounds like an option. I had not thought of this "create your own ability" option, even if it is explicit in the exmisc section. Good one :slight_smile: The sample effect uses 2 abilities (Whistle up and Music). The first is CrAu, and the second ReAu and PeAu to control the wind. I can easily work up a summoning (CrIg) and a control (Re/Mu/Pe Ig) version myself. Control would use Finesse to simplify things. Ok, I will buy that. 8)

So let's see how it works:
[spoiler]Firepower (Major, supernatural). Having this ability grants you the accelerated ability Firepower at 0 level. A character with this ability is able to create fire, duplicating the effects of any Creo Ignem spell at range Voice and target Individual (base parameters). To create the fire the character rolls Stamina (Presence also sounds adequate) + Firepower against an Ease Factor listed in the table below. If successful, the fire immediately manifests and performs what is commanded to do by the character. A character with Firepower can also control fires, both magical and mundane using his Finesse. Controlling a fire requires a Presence + Finesse using the Ease Factors for maintaining concentration on a spell (ArM5, page 82: Trivial 0, Simple 3, Average 9, Hard 12, Very Hard 15)

EASE FACTOR & BASE EFFECT THAT CAN REPLICATE (R: VOice D: Mom. T: Individual)
Ease Factor 6
Base effect 3 or below; (light breeze, enough to clear the strench of a room)
Create light equivalent to torchlight.
Heat an object to be hot to the touch.
Ignite something very flammable (like parchment).
Ease factor 9
Base effect 4; (wind strong enough to affect arrow accuracy)
Create a fire doing +5 damage.
Create light as bright as a cloudy day.
Ignite something flammable (like dry wood or charcoal)
Heat an object enough to boil water.+10 damage; +5 in unnatural shape
Ease Factor 12
Base effect 5; (strong wind, enough to propel a sailing ship)
Create a fire doing +10 damage.
Create a fire doing +5 damage in an unnatural shape, such as in a ring or sheet, or covering an item. (Purely cosmetic shapes are free.)
Create light as bright as direct sunlight on a clear day.
Ignite something slightly flammable (like leather or damp wood).
Heat an object enough to make it glow red-hot.
Ease Factor 15
Base effect 10; Gale force wind, knock someone over
Create a fire doing +15 damage.
Create a fire doing +10 damage in an unnatural shape.
Ignite something barely flammable (like a human body).
Heat an object enough to melt lead.
Ease Factor 18
Base effect 15; Hurricane force wind, uproot trees
Create a fire doing +20 damage.
Ease Factor 21
Base effect 20;
Create a fire doing +25 damage.
Ease factor 24
Base effect 25;
Create a fire doing +30 damage.

Change in parameters:
+3 Ease Factor for each parameter increase over the base. So you can summon larger fires, that last longer or that affect more people (or are more precise using target Part), but it cost you increased difficulties. Reduction of parameters (range Touch, for example) do not reduce the difficulty of the effect.

Sounds right?

I will have to redo parts of the character but sounds about OK. In fact, he will be more powerful than what he is now.[/spoiler]

EDIT: Ok, I typed all that and then read the simpler version of Marko (acelerated ability. Cast using Sta + Ability; difficulty = spell level).Man, I will SUCK at penetration :mrgreen: I left what I had written under a SPOILER in case anyone is mildly intereste din my rants. Will use the simpler version of Marko, since it is easier to work on a regular basis.

The important question: Major or Minor virtue? I guess major, but to be sure. Life boost sounds like a definitive "in" as well, yeah.

And BTW, I already have Hex, but you have not noticed it. :wink: Ah, the wonders of Enrichment...

Thanks!
Xavi

13

Ok, I typed all that and then read the simpler version of Marko (acelerated ability. Cast using Sta + Ability; difficulty = spell level).Man, I will SUCK at penetration :mrgreen:

Will use the simpler version of Marko, since it is easier to work on a regular basis. The important question: Major or Minor virtue? I guess major, but to be sure.

Life boost sounds like a definitive "in" as well, yeah.

Thanks!
Xavi

14

My vote is Minor, as it is covered by the definition of a Minor Focus to merely "create flames and control fire thus generated". If you want to cover all fire magic, as defined by a Major Focus "any fire related effect", then I would say Major.
I would further grant that you may use your Accelerated Ability score in lieu of a Form Bonus for some modicum of resistance against magical fire and jinn.
Maybe the Major Virtue of Craft Magic, allowing you to put Hexes in crafted items or make a charged item using your fire power (the latter would give you better Penetration potential)
Take Arcane Lore and a good Penetration score :wink:

Also, maybe redefine your enemy? Berber Hedge Wizards, part of the current wave of invaders, who have little or no magic resistance to begin with. Most (but not all) of the Sahirs in Iberia are Hermetic, and there are few Hermetic Sahirs elsewhere. As for non-Hermetic Sahirs, shir in general is looked down upon by the Berbers of North Africa, but is common as you head East towards the Middle East. If you are interested in going up against the Order of Suleiman that is :wink:

15

Ok, changing the background somewhat. They USED to hunt sahirs 8and the sahirs still see them in a really bad light), but they have evolved to be a more general mercenary company that tend to work for both Hermetics and mundanes.

The Flame Brothers are a mercenary company active in both Iberia and the Levant. The leaders of the company are Fire Casters and most of them are Nightwalkers as well. They tend to work for some factions of house Flambeau waging war against enemies that the magi deem worthy of some burning attention but does not want to mess around with directly. The Flame Brothers tend to do such operations acting under the cover of a larger mundane operation in order to disguise their manhunting activities. From time to time they are even contacted to work during wizard wars. When contracted by magi, they are paid both in silver and in magical resources.

The creation of the Flame Brothers goes back to Delendos. He wanted to wage war on the killers of Flambeau, but some Sahirs were on negotiations to enter House Ex Miscellanea and such move was deemed undesirable politically. The creation of the Flame Brothers teaching a version of Ignem to a group of Nightwalkers and turning them into a military unit was Delendos’ response to his needs under the political mood of the time. The Flame Brothers contributed brought down some of the killers of Flambeau and ensured that the Sahirs looked more keenly to acquire the Parma Magica and be under the aegis of the Order. By 1230 the attention of the Flame Brothers tends to centre in Berber magicians, but they have a long story of animosity with the Iberian and Middle Eastern Sahirs, since they have waged a low intensity war for centuries, and some members of the Flame Brothers still try to bring down a Sahir when they can.

16

I updated the character in the first post. Let's see what you think :slight_smile:

17

LOVE the background. Period.

Quick answer, sorry if I can't do anything :frowning:

Agree for elementalists, but... IMO, some elementalists powers are nonetheless good for such a concept, in a pack of other powers. I thought specifically of Controlling and... The one that lets you extract Ignem vis I can't remember the name. Rafining? These, you could take aside your Ex Misc CrIg virtue.
With a mythic companion, that's... Aargh... 3 major virtues? Or is the second Elementalist virtue minor? I don't think so, but I seem to remember it. That'd leave 11 virtues.

RoP: M

As I see it: Take a focus power, like crafter of form. IIRC, taken twice (6 virtues), this lets you, for 1 fatigue, spont any CrIg or ReIg spell up to lvl 25.
AND
If there's a power you want to use a lot, take it as a lesser or greater power with a might cost (and thus fatigue, for you) of 0. That way, you can use it all you want.
Note also that, contrary to a supernatural ability who would be impeded, these powers work perfectly even in a divine aura or inside an aegis :smiling_imp:
I did a (nrmal) compagnon terram hedge wizard like this, I can show it to you as an example, if you're curious. Just need to bring him here.

Hey, I am dumb!!! Isn't there a Muspelli ability to create fire and all? You should look at it, although I believe it to be a minor supernatural ability. I believe you can directly take the ease factor and effects, but with a Major Accelerated ability. This lets you achieve the higher utiseta effects who, IIRC, are quite powerful. I think you should definitely look into it.

Life boost is a great idea!

IMO, that works, as major:

  • It is way more flexible than an ex micc major virtue (so that'd be a "no")
  • It is harder than what an ex misc virtue would be (which, IMO, compensates).

I liked your version, though.

HoH: S has the Auram equivalent as Major abilities. IIRC, it says that your major supernatural ability should cover about the same scope than a minor focus, like Creating fire. That's spot on.

Further, the Muspelli abiliy I talked above (Wildfire!! That's wildfire!) is minor, but not accelerated.
So I believe he could take it as a minor "normal" ability, or as a Major "Accelerated" one.

I'm going. Probably won't connect until at least monday, though, although I have a few hope for late tomorrow.

18

Ok, we have 1 vote for Major and 1 vote for minor. Or 2 for Major, since that was my impression as well. I am building him as a companion character, though, not a magus. I think Fixer got that bit mixed up.

I will have to look at ROP:M as suggested. However, that book breaks my suspension of disbelief big time (too much magic in the hands of humans) and I will need to look carefully into it since I am not very confident in the mechanics right now. I am messing around so much that I might end up ditching the whole fire magic thing and go for something else. Like an assassin that summons a dozen of wolves inside your bedroom
"How did the lord die?"
"He was bitten to death by wolves"
"Ah, hunting accident"
"No, it happened in his room at the castle keep"
"WTF!?!?!":mrgreen:

Cheers,
Xavi

19

I change my vote to major. Fixer has a point, it is an Accelerated ability after all.

20

Ok, Major. I will think if I really want to have this one. Maybe I would be better off centering in plain ol' close combat and using the magic for recon and infiltration (Nightwalking). I will need to change the story (I liked it, though) but the character concept does not change much. Back to the drawing board :slight_smile:

Xavi